Ashy- Boy
by xxElectrick
Summary: Ash's worst nightmare is sitting right next to him. And his name is Gary Oak. [FINISHED]
1. Chapter 1

**So, I debated even posting this, because it bears a resemblance to a fan fiction I read a longggg time ago, and I couldn't find the name of it :( I wrote this a long time ago too, but anyway... Here we go!**

* * *

"Mom, I'm 16. I don't have to run errands for you just because my trainer career has been put on hold." Ash groaned, staring at the cold toast on his plate.

Ash wasn't the only person with the loss of his passion. The job of Pokemon trainer was temporarily prohibited in Kanto, after over 200 cases of wild Pokemon attacking humans were reported in the same week in the region. He couldn't catch or battle Pokemon, except out of self defense, for a while until the situation blew over.

"Come on, Ash," his mother said, sitting across from him at the kitchen table. "I need to get this present to your grandmother before her birthday, in 10 days."

"10 days?" Ash asked incredulously. "Are you kidding? Grandma lives, like, so far away!" He stabbed a berry with his fork.

"Pika!" Ash's Pikachu exclaimed.

"Well I can't exactly have the pidgeys deliver it, can I?" she retorted. The post office was shut down too. "Do you think I anticipated all this?"

"Well, no..." Ash mumbled. "But can't I just get it to her late?"

His mother paused and stared at him for a second. "This is very important to me, Ash."

Ash sighed, knowing he had lost. "Fine." he muttered. "But I don't know how I'm supposed to get to Grandma's when I only have 10 days."

"With a car, you could."

"I don't have a car."

"Gary has a car."

"I don't have a liscense."

"Gary has a liscense."

As he realized what his mother was implying, Ash's face contorted into horror. "No- no way! I'm not driving with that egomaniac all the way to Grandma's house."

His mother handed him the white package, wrapped with a single blue ribbon. "Ash! He's a nice boy!"

"Mom!" Ash moaned.

Ash's mom looked uncomfortable. "I was kind of hoping you would say you wanted to." There was a knock on the door, and she went to answer it. "...Because I already asked him."

Ash groaned again and dropped his face into his hands. "Mom!" He heard the door open.

"Hi, Mrs. Ketchum!" A sickening voice crooned.

"Hello, Gary!" she greeted. "Ash, your friend is here!"

Ash lifted his head. "I can see that." He seethed, glaring at Gary.

* * *

When Ash had packed everything he needed for the trip, he said bye to his mom and left through the front door.

Gary sat in the driver seat of his shiny red convertable, parked in front of Ash's house, and texting someone with one hand when Ash slid into the other seat with his bag and his Pikachu on his shoulder.

Gary looked up and smiled when Ash came by. "Decided to show up, loser?" He clapped lightly. "On time, and not in your pajamas! I'm impressed, Ashy!"

"Let's just go." Ash grumbled.

After hours of sullen silence Ash finally spoke. "So, why did you agree to drive me anyway?"

"Please. Do you think I would be driving to your grammy's house right now if I had the choice? Get over yourself, Loser. Gramps made me do it. Got tired of me complaining that I was bored." He took a sip out of his beer can. "Sorry if you expected me to want to be here, Ashy- boy."

"I didn't!" Ash defensively yelled. "And don't call me that!"

Gary just chuckled and took another sip. "Whatever you say, Ashy- boy."

Trying to keep his cool, he turned away from Gary and stared out the window. How long would the ride be? He counted the seconds as they passed. 1... 2... 3...

When he was just passing one thousand, the car screeched to a stop, and Ash, having only to turn his head, saw why.

"Need a ride, Beautiful?" Gary asked a girl with long brown hair and a blue backpack, walking along the road. The girl giggled and accepted his offer, and Ash groaned.

"Get in the back, Loser." Gary told him.

"No way! She can sit in the back." he protested.

"Do you want to walk to Grammy's, or do you want to sit in the back?" The ultimatum.

"Fine, whatever." Ash let the girl sit in his seat while he trudged into the back aisle with his Pikachu.

1,046... 1,047...

Gary's arm hung around the girl's shoulders. For the next two hours Ash proceeded to make gagging noises in the back just out of spite as his rival flirted with the girl, until he dropped her off on a path leading to the nearest town.

"Finally." Ash mumbled.

Gary snorted. "Jealous much, Ashy?"

"Shut up."

With a shrug, Gary played the radio and turned the volume up. "Turn it down!" Ash shouted. Smirking, Gary turned the dial to the right so the music was only louder. "Gary! Turn down the music!"

"You don't want music, Ashy- boy? Then you can walk." Gary smiled and sipped from his can.

Ash was seriously considering that at this point. "Don't call me that." he grumbled, trying to think of an annoying nickname of his own. "Don't call me that... Gare-bear." To his shock, Gary flinched and his face hardened.

"Whatever, Loser." Gary said, looking forward.

"Okay, Gaaaaaare Beaaaaaar."

"Okay, Ashy." Gary retorted weakly.

Now that he got a rise out of Gary, Ash wasn't going to stop. "Gare- bear, Gare- bear, Gare- bear!" he chanted. Gary's grip tightened on the leather steering wheel.

"Knock it off, Ashy- boy."

"What's wrong, Gare- bear?" Ash teased.

Gary's lips were pinched and tight. "Be mature."

No one said anything for 10 minutes, until Ash, snorting with laughter, uttered a single word: "Gare- bear." and burst into laughter. He couldn't resist.

The car stopped suddenly and Ash wondered if he was picking up another girl. "Okay, get out." Gary ordered.

Ash blinked. "What? Are you serious?"

"I don't have to deal with you." Dead serious, apparently,

Ash narrowed his eyebrows. "Um, yeah, you do. Your grandpa is making you."

"So? I'll drive into Celedon, hook up with a couple girls, blow my money at the slots, and be back in time to tell Gramps what a great time we had together." A grin spread across his sickening face.

Without a good comeback, Ash just answered lamely, "I don't have to get out!"

Gary's phony smile disappeared quicker than it had come. "Get out, Ash!" The unfamiliar intensity in his voice shook Ash so he opened his door and stepped out immediately, carrying Pikachu, who was asleep on his lap.

As he walked, and walked, he wondered what about that harmless nickname could have caused Gary to freak out. He had waited years and years for the day when he could pay Gary back for the times he had teased Ash or made him angry, but now, it didn't feel as satisfying as he used to imagine it would be.

As he pondered this and traveled along Route 4, he noticed Pikachu, who had woken up, was acting different. His ears perked up, and he looked at Ash as if to say, "Do you hear that?"

"What is it, Pikachu?" Ash listened closely, until he heard a terrible scream. He sharply turned his head towards the noise. "I hear it!"

Pikachu nodded vigorously. "Pika!"

"Let's go!" He ran ahead along the dirt road as fast as he could, following the sounds of the piercing screams.

"Chu!" Pikachu exclaimed, pointing towards a figure in the trees being attacked by a Rattata.

"Is that...?" Ash looked closely as he sprinted. "It's- it's Gary!" he shouted, running towards him. As he got closer, Gary tripped and fell on his back, screaming for help, as the Rattata jumped on his stomach and bit into his shoulder with his fangs, rousing another scream. Gary tried to pull it off, but its fangs were locked on tight.

"Pikachu, use tail whip to get the Rattata off of him!" Ash knew his Pokemon couldn't use thundershock yet or Gary would be fried, too. As Gary flailed and yelled, and the Rattata clawed and chewed, Pikachu leaped into the air, and wacked the Rattata off Gary using his tail with strength.

"Run!" Ash told Gary. Gary staggered off the ground.

Ash expected the wild, rabid Pokemon to turn on himself or his Pikachu, giving Gary time to flee, but it had its eyes set on the rival 16 year old.

Gary reached and clawed hopelessly at a short ledge, trying to climb up, but it was so dry everything he grabbed at tumbled down at him. He cursed loudly, covered in dust, dirt, and blood. He slid down the side of the ledge until he was back on the ground, fatigued, and curled into a protective ball.

Trying not to grimace at the blood- stained dirt, Ash didn't give the Rattata another opportunity to leap onto the boy. "Pikachu! Use thundershock!"

"Piiikaaaaa!" The flash of light forced Ash to close his eyes, but when he opened them, he was happy to see that the Rattata had scurried and limped into a patch of tall grass, near fainting.

Ash released a relieved sigh. "Gary, it's gone!" Ash said, walking over to him and tapping his back.

Gary slowly opened up, and realized that he was safe. He quickly stood, looking deeply embarressed. "I'm- I'm fine!"

"You need to get to a hospital." Ash said.

Gary shook his head insistantly. "No I don't! I'm okay." His voice cracked.

"You're kidding me, you are not okay."

Gary's breath shook. "No, I'm not kidding. Let's just go."

"Come on, let's get in the car. Do you need help walking to it?" Gary didn't say anything. Ash asked, "Come on, what is it?"

Gary pointed towards his red convertable, smashed against a tree. "Whoops." he muttered.

Ash's mouth dropped open."What the h-" He paused and composed himself. "What did you do?" he demanded.

"I was a little distracted." Gary shrugged.

Ash sighed, annoyed. "I'm not going to argue with you right now. We're really close to Cerulean City. I'll help you get there."

Gary didn't argue either. He let Ash clean his wounds and wrap a couple of them with fabric from his shirt. "Okay, we're good. Yay, I'm healed. I've never felt better in my life. Now let's just keep going." Well, maybe he argued a little.

"We're so close to the hospital." Ash said. "And those wounds are really deep. They could be infected. You might still be bleeding a little. We can't afford to risk this. By the way, there's no way we're keeping this from Officer Jenny." He glanced at Gary's shoulder and clenched his teeth. It was... Bad.

"Whatever."

"So what happened, anyway?"

Gary sighed as they walked. "I crashed, but I was okay, except I swerved right by a Rattata. I wasn't sure if I hit it or not so I got out to check. I must have just scared it, because it freaked out on me. Stupid Pokemon." He kicked a rock.

"That's so weird. We need to find out what's going on with these Pokemon attacking people." Ash brushed a leaf out of his hair.

Gary snorted. "That's so like you to say. It's not our problem. There are people who can figure this out FOR us."

Ash rolled his eyes. "That's so like YOU to say. You're so self- absorbed."

He looked ahead, not denying it. "How can I not be, with so much to be absorbed with?" Typical arrogant smile.

"You know, even when you're injured, you're still an *ss." The corners of Ash's lips perked up a bit.

"Thanks, Loser." Gary returned the smile.

"Well, at least I finally got a 'Thank you.'" Ash remarked. He was a little annoyed by Gary's lack of gratitude. His eyes widened. "Hey, look! There's Cerulean!"

Gary stopped suddenly. He smacked himself on the forehead. "I just realized, I forgot my Pokemon in the car!"

Ash groaned loudly. "Gary!"

"Jeez, don't go blaming me for this. You should have reminded me!" Gary accused.

"You're ridiculous." Ash argued. "It's not my responsibility, it's yours."

"Wow. That's a little selfish, to expect ME to have to do all the work. Even in this condition I'm in. That's REAL nice."

"Well! What're we gonna do?"

"Well!" Gary mimicked. "You can't just leave them there. You have to go back and get them."

"Just me? You walked all the way here, can't you go back?"

"There's no way." Gary defiantly insisted. "I'm feeling a little lightheaded from this loss of blood. But I guess, if I have to, I can walk..." He limped forward pitifully, grunting dramatically.

What's the point? "Fine! I don't want you with me, anyway! Wait here." Ash gave up.

Gary's pained expression vanished. "Great! I'll even hold Grammy's package for you." He chuckled in his unchanging careless way.

Ash handed him the present and started back, Pikachu tiredly walking next to him.

"Bye- bye, Ashy- boy!" called a smug Gary, settling himself down under a shady tree.

"Can you believe him, Pikachu?" Ash exclaimed, with an armful of Gary's Pokèballs.

"Pikachu!" it replied in disgust.

"I don't even know if it's safe for him to be alone here. If he gets attacked by another wild Pokèmon, I won't be there to save him. Thank God, it's getting dark, so it's cooled down." He craned his neck to see farther ahead. "And he should be right up here." Pikachu nodded.

"We'll get his wounds checked out, report this to Officer Jenny, and go straight to sleep. I'm exhausted." His stomach growled.

"Pika!"

Ash yawned. "Yeah, I'm hungry too. Okay, we'll have some of the sandwiches I packed."

Ash stopped slowly. "Wait, I think we passed him. He was supposed to be back there." They walked back a little but didn't see Gary. "Maybe he fell asleep." Ash suggested.

"Pikachu..." Pikachu said nervously.

"Gary!" Ash called. "Where are you! This isn't funny! Look, he even left the present here." He and Pikachu looked for a long time, but with no luck.

"Oh no, Pikachu... He's gone!" Was he kidnapped? Did he just get up and walk away? What could have happened? "I- I'm sure he's perfectly fine. Gary can handle himself." He was only trying to assure himself because he knew it was getting too late to go looking for him, and he felt really guilty.

Ash laid out under the same tree Gary had earlier. "Well, goodnight, Pikachu. We'll have to go looking for Gary tommorow. That'll put us way behind with Grandma's birthday. There's no way we'll make it now."

"I wonder what's in it, anyway." He picked up the little white package. "Doesn't it feel lighter?"

"Pika!" Pikachu felt it and nodded. "Pikachu!"

Ash ripped it open, to see that it was indeed empty, except for a note. "What's this?" He read it out loud so Pikachu could hear.

Ԁєɑʀ ɑʂʜ (ɑĸɑ ɑʂʜყ- ʙoყ),

ı ԀєƈıԀєԀ Ɨo ʟєɑѵє tʜıʂ ɴotє ʙєƈɑuʂє ı'm ʂuʀє ყou'ʀє pʀoʙɑʙʟყ ғʀєɑĸıɴɢ ouƗ ʀıɢʜƗ ɴoա, ʂo ı ɢuєʂʂ ı ʂʜouʟԀ ʟєƗ ყou ĸɴoա ı'm oĸɑყ, ɑɴԀ Ɨєʟʟ ყou ɑ ƈoupʟє oтʜєʀ Ɨʜıɴɢʂ.

ғıʀʂƗ, ı ʟєғƗ. ƗʜɑƗ'ʂ ɑʟʟ ı ƈɑɴ ʂɑყ. ıƗ'ʂ ғoʀ pєʀʂoɴɑʟ ʀєɑʂoɴʂ ƗʜɑƗ ı ƈɑɴ'Ɨ Ɨєʟʟ ყou. Ԁoɴ'Ɨ ғʀєɑĸ ouƗ AGAIN, ʙuƗ ı ʝuʂƗ ƈɑɴ'Ɨ.

ʂєƈoɴԀ, ı'ʟʟ ɢıѵє ყou ɑ ʀєɑʂoɴ աʜყ ı ĸıɴԀɑ ʟoʂƗ ıƗ Ɨʜє oƗʜєʀ Ԁɑყ. ı'm աʀıƗıɴɢ Ɨʜıʂ Ԁoաɴ ıɴʂƗєɑԀ oғ Ɨєʟʟıɴɢ ყou, ʙєƈɑuʂє ıƗ'ʂ ʀєɑʟʟყ ʂƗupıԀ & Ɨʜıʂ ıʂ єɑʂıєʀ. աєʟʟ, oĸɑყ, Ɨʜıʂ ıʂ աʜყ, ʙuƗ Ԁoɴ'Ɨ ʟɑuɢʜ ɑƗ ʜoա ʂƗupıԀ ɑɴԀ ƈʜєєʂყ ıƗ ʂouɴԀʂ.

ɢɑʀє- ʙєɑʀ ıʂ աʜɑƗ mყ pɑʀєɴƗʂ uʂєԀ Ɨo ƈɑʟʟ mє. ı աɑʂ oɴʟყ 4 աʜєɴ Ɨʜєყ ԀıʂɑppєɑʀєԀ, ʙuƗ ı ƈɑɴ ʂpєƈıғıƈɑʟʟყ ʀєmєmєʙєʀ ıƗ, ɑɴԀ ı ʀєmєmʙєʀ ʜɑƗıɴɢ ıƗ. ı ɢuєʂʂ єѵєɴ ɑʂ ɑ ʟıƗƗʟє ĸıԀ ı ʜɑԀ ɑ ʟıƗƗʟє Ɨoo muƈʜ pʀıԀє, աʜıƈʜ ı աıʟʟ ɑԀmıƗ Ɨo. ʙuƗ ƗʜɑƗ mєmoʀყ, ƗʜɑƗ oɴє Ɨʜıɴɢ ı ʜɑѵє ʟєғƗ... ıƗ'ʂ ĸıɴԀɑ ʂɑƈʀєԀ Ɨo mє. ı աɑʂ ɑ ʟıƗƗʟє ƈɑuɢʜƗ oғғ ɢɑuʀԀ աʜєɴ ı ʜєɑʀԀ ყou ʂɑყıɴɢ ıƗ, ʂo ყєɑʜ.

ı pʀomıʂє ı'ʟʟ ƈʜєƈĸ mყʂєʟғ ıɴƗo Ɨʜє ʜoʂpıƗɑʟ ʀıɢʜƗ ɴoա ıғ ყou pʀomıʂє ɴoƗ Ɨo ƈomє ɑғƗєʀ mє. ı nєєԀ Ɨo Ԁo Ɨʜıʂ ɑʟoɴє.

ɑʙouƗ mყ poĸєmoɴ, ı ɢuєʂʂ ყou ʂʜouʟԀ ʝuʂƗ Ԁʀop Ɨʜєm oғғ ɑƗ mყ ʜouʂє աʜєɴ ყou ɢєƗ ʙɑƈĸ. Ɨєʟʟ ყouʀ mom ı ʂɑıԀ Ɨʜɑɴĸʂ ғoʀ Ɨʜє ʜomєmɑԀє ƈooĸıєʂ, ɑɴԀ Ɨєʟʟ ყouʀ ɢʀɑɴԀmɑ ı աɑʂ ʂoʀʀყ ғoʀ єɑƗıɴɢ ʜєʀ ɢıғƗ ʙuƗ ı աɑʂ ɑғʀɑıԀ ıƗ աouʟԀ ɢo ʂƗɑʟє & ɑʟʂo ı աɑʂ ғєєʟıɴɢ pʀєƗƗყ ʜuɴɢʀყ.

ʂıɴƈєʀєʟყ,

ɢɑʀყ oɑĸ

* * *

**So... There it is... I actually have the whole thing written already, so there will definitely be more chapters later. If you've read up to this point, thank you very much, and I hope you stay for the future chapters!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Wow..." Ash wasn't sure what to say or think about this. He wasn't even sure if Gary wrote it. It's so vulnerable, and "not Gary", except for the couple quips about him freaking out, and the fact that he apparently ate the cookies that his mom made for Grandma.

Then again, who else in the world has that irritating, pompous handwriting but Gary Oak?

"Okay, Pikachu. We think about this later. Now, we have to get Gary." Without hesitation, Ash headed on the path towards the city.

"Pika! Pi!" Pikachu argued, staying put. "Pikachu!"

"I know what the note says, but I need to get to the bottom of this." He didn't turn back. "Plus, it's dangerous to go out without any Pokemon right now. What if he get's attacked again? He'd be killed this time."

Soon, Ash reached Cerulean Hospital. "Excuse me?" he asked, unable to disguise his urgency although still being polite, to a purple- haired girl in a white coat near the door. "Can you tell me if a 'Gary Oak' has been checked in?"

The girl flipped through some papers. "Oh, yes." she chirped with a smile. "Actually, he just checked out at 11:37, about an hour ago."

"Was he okay?" Ash asked.

Her bright smile didn't falter as she said, "Well, he was in bad shape when he came in here. He didn't seem to have any infections, so we cleaned and wrapped him up so he was good as new! He said he felt good, so we let him go."

Ash thanked her and left. "Where do we go now?"

"Have you seen a boy my age and about my height, brown hair, in bandages?" Ash rapid- fire recited, for the third time that day, to the bike store owner.

"Yeah, he just bought a bike, like, twenty five minutes ago." the man said after a moment of thought.

"Do you know where he was going?"

"No, sorry. I just saw him go that way, when I was looking out the window." He pointed outside to a dirt path.

Forgetting to thank him, Ash quickly left the bike store. If Gary has a bike, he's going to be able to ride really fast, which means Ash had even less time than he thought.

Ash sprinted down the path the bike store owner pointed out. He wished he could have afforded a bike, but for now he had to depend on what how fast his running shoes could take him. He ran as quickly as he could, for what felt like forever. As he grew exhausted, he slowed to a jog, and finally, a ragged walk.

"Why are we even-" He paused to catch his breath. "-chasing him-" Another breath. "-Pikachu?" Ash asked, near collapsing.

"Pika, pi!" agreed exhausted Pikachu.

"It's not like I owe him anything. Besides, he's probably fine. We would have heard him screaming if he had been attacked." He slurred his words a bit in exhaustion.

"Let's... Let's just go to sleep now..." He managed to walk a few steps into the grass before falling into a bush, asleep before he hit the ground.

Ash was awakened by voices.

"God, I'm going, I'm going!"

"Are you sure you're going the right way?"

"Yes, of course I'm sure!"

He was barely awake, but he knew he recognized the voices. "Huh...?" he blearily groaned.

"What if he already passed us last night?" a deep voice said.

Ash heard a sigh. "There's no way. He probably didn't even wake up yet."

"Huh?" he whispered, fully awake now. He peered over the bush he was behind, to take a short glimpse, and saw five people and a Meowth walking down the dirt road. "It's... Team Rocket... And..."

He felt sick to his stomach suddenly. "Gary?" The last two men wore black outfits, with red R's on their chests. "And a couple Team Rocket grunts." He woke up Pikachu, and put a finger to his lips, to warn him to not make a sound.

The group walked right by him, and Ash bent down again to avoid being seen, as his search party asked Gary more repetitive questions.

Just to make sure his eyes were seeing this right, Ash stared for one more second. He could see that Gary didn't give a crap. "I swear, he has no idea. This'll be a piece of cake." Gary bragged.

And right before Ash ducked back down, he saw Gary look at him right, straight in the eyes, regretless. Ash felt a nervous chill. Gary knew where he was.

"Oh my God..." Ash whispered when they were far away. "Pikachu..."

"Pi..."

"Gary betrayed me, Pikachu. This whole time, this was all part of his plan." he couldn't keep the pain and shock out of his voice.

"It all makes sense..." Ash continued. "The whole time he's been trying to ditch me so he could get Team Rocket and show them where I am. They probably offered him a lot of money. Finally, he escapes, bikes to Team Rocket, and walks back to find me."

He became angry. "All because they want my Pokemon! They just want you. I can't believe this." He tried to shake it off, knowing his situation was too urgent to too sit there being angry, at least for now. "We better get moving. I think he saw me."

He stomped down the side of the road. "After I went through all this trouble for him! This is what I get!" he ranted.

Pikachu suddenly started pointing and looking behind Ash. "Pika! PikaCHU! Pi!"

He turned around, and suddenly saw a Fearow dart for his head. He ducked, barely in time, gasping in surprise.

"Pikachu, u- use... Use... " But he was paralyzed with fear, watching the Fearow turn around, and dive in towards Ash, who, regaining control of his nervous system, rolled over to avoid being shishkabobed. Now angry, the Pokemon flew to him once more, and Ash braced himself and shut his eyes tight, but nothing happened.

Gingerly, he opened his eyes. The Fearow was lying on the ground. Ash walked over with great caution and examined it. It wasn't dead. He didn't think it had fainted, either. It just seemed to be sleeping. "Wow, that was weird." Ash said. "Right, Pikachu?"

"Pi- Pikachu? Where are you?" He looked around. "No, please! Not you, Pikachu! I can't be alone here." He heard a twig snap, and some barely audible cursing, coming from deeper in the forest.

Ash whipped around quickly. His mind was racing too fast for him to think, so instead, he just ran towards the sounds. Whoever made them realized he was coming, because the footsteps became faster. But Ash knew that he could go faster, and if he could go faster, they weren't going to get away with this.

But wait, he thought. I need to be more than a fast runner, I have to be smart. He got a little closer, just so he could get a look at his Pikachu- stealers. Two Team Rocket grunts, probably the same ones from earlier. The others must be waiting for them somewhere. And Ash was going to find out where.

He trailed behind until they thought they had lost him, and followed them. Gary had seen Ash. And he had tipped Team Rocket off. Why wouldn't he? Maybe Gary'd get a few extra dollars because of it.

But now Ash was on a new mission, one that had nothing to do with Gary. He was going to get his best friend back.

⋆◌̥*⃝̣◌⑅⃝◌*⃝̣◌̥⋆◌̥*⃝̣◌⑅⃝◌*⃝̣◌̥⋆◌*⃝̣

Vicious memories swirled through my mind of... Everything. I was hot and sweaty, even though it was uncomfortably cool and dark outside. Although all patched up now, my wounds still stung like crazy.

The silence as I rode on my bike gave me terrible time to clear my mind, and I wished for a distraction, so I wouldn't feel so guilty.

But my story kept playing and playing in my mind, on a continuous loop, starting from the beginning and ending in the present time.

Team Rocket had invented a syrum that, when injected into Pokemon, caused them to turn crazed and rabid. They'd inject it into wild Pokemon and release them when they saw trainers coming by. They attacked the trainers, and Team Rocket had a couple methods of stealing their Pokemon:

If the Pokeballs fell out of their trainers belt, or they weren't even in a Pokeball, it was easy for them to snatch them up. But if they had to get them out of the victim's belt, it involved waiting for them to be, well, disabled, in one way or another.

Pokemon attacks were running rampant in Kanto, but Team Rocket usually was unsuccessful with stealing Pokèmon, as the syrum usually wore off too early .

It got so out of control, catching and training Pokemon was banned until the problem was solved.

Two members of Team Rocket, the ones that I had met in the past, called me one day and told me all this. They said there was one Pokemon they never got, but they really needed it. They asked me if I could lure Ash into the wild, towards their base, so they could steal his Pikachu.

They offered me the best reward I could have gotten.

That's why I accepted the request to drive Ash. I spent hours trying to get him out of the car, by annoying him as much as I could, but he didn't budge.

When he started to call me that name, I felt a shocked jolt go through me, and the memories it caused me to have made my stomach twist and lurch. I kicked him out right there. At least I finally got rid of him.

I planned on driving to the Team Rocket HQ, and informing them that I finished so I could make sure I got my reward, and just drive back home.

But that freak Rattata thing happened when I was in the car. It must have escaped from somewhere, having probably been on a heavy dose of syrum. Of course, Ash managed to catch up to me, and he probably saved my life. He acted like, really nice... And he seemed like he actually cared about me. And this whole time, it's not like I had ever cared about him.

I couldn't take the guilt. I let go of my dreams of the reward... And I ran.

I'm still running. I'm running from Team Rocket. And Ash. When I stop running, when I'm home, my problems will be over. Like none of it ever happened. Ash will never know, and I'll be free from my-

"Holy s**t!" I fell off my bike when something jumped onto the path.

"To protect the world from devistation-"

"-To unite all peoples within our nation-"

"-To denounce the evils of truth and love-"

"-To extend our reach to the stars above-"

I wasn't waiting another second. I turned around and bolted into the darkness.

But after only a few steps, two men dressed in black jumped in front of me. "Woah!" I interjected in surprise. One of them grabbed me.

"That was rather rude." Jesse said in an offended voice.

"Yes, we didn't even get to finish our speech." James added."I can't believe you'd think you'd get away that easily."

"God, I'm going, I'm going!" I heaved, after a bad night's sleep.

"Are you sure you're going the right way?" Meowth asked.

"Yes, of course I'm sure!"

"What if he already passed us last night?" James chimed in.

I sighed. "There's no way. He probably didn't even wake up yet." I knew this mission was really important to Team Rocket, but they sure didn't have much faith in me after last night."I swear, he has no idea. This'll be a piece of cake."

I thought I heard something so I turned around and looked where the whispering and rustling was coming from. I squinted. It was Ash, hiding behind a bush, watching us. I locked eyes with him for a moment. He looked so betrayed and hurt, and I wished I could tell him everything.

I kept my face stoical, even though it was hard.

I must have stared a second too long, because one of the grunts asked me what I was looking at. "Nothing." I mumbled, trying to seem and feel indifferent, but feeling panic burst in me.

"Grab the syrum," he said to the other grunt. "We'll take care of him. You five keep walkin'." He gave me a scary, withering look over his shoulder. "And we'll deal with you later." I watched them turn around and head right towards Ash.

"Keep walking." Jesse told me, giving me a nudge. I barely felt it.

I wanted to speak, but I felt something holding me back. I realized it's because starting from the moment they caught me running, I've no longer been a partner, or accomplice, or teammate, but a prisoner. I started walking.

After a while, I began to get bored. I was in the mood for being a pain in the butt. "Are we there yet?" I asked.

"Look around. Does it look like we are there?" James growled irritably.

"I'm sorry, I just assumed that your secret base wouldn't have flashing lights and neon arrows pointing to it." I cracked. They ignored it.

I waited a few seconds. "Are we there NOW?"

"Ignore him." James whispered. Jesse looked perplexed.

"Hello? Are we there yet?" I resisted laughing. "Now? Are we there _now?_"

It looked like Jesse was about to lose it, when Meowth interrupted. "Look! There it is."

I snorted. Nothing like annoying Team Rocket to pass the time.

The three stalked into the trees. "And, you can tell this is the place... how?" I questioned. They walked over to a huge boulder, and James knelt down. Feeling through a bush, he patted around the ground until he pushed down on what looked like a button, camoflauged into the rock.

"Wha-" I was surprised as a small opening in the bottom of the boulder revealed itself. "Wait, we have to go in THERE?" It was just a small litle hole.

But Jesse was already trying to squeeze in there. After some effort, she was in, and James, and Meowth followed.

I peered into the hole. The base was actually underground, and getting into it involved landing about six or so feet below the ground. "How do you get back up?" I called down there.

"There's a ladder back there that we bring over and climb up." James said, staring up at me.

"That'd probably take a few minutes, right?" I asked, glancing at a small boulder.

"I suppose so,"answered Jesse. "Why?"

"Just wondering!" Without a moment's hesitation, I picked up the rock and smashed it into the hole, plugging it up. "Smell ya later!" I shouted victoriously, and stomped on the rock once more for good measure.

"What are you doing?" I heard someone yell as I left.

"Oh no, he's not running again!"

No, this time I wasn't running. I was tired of running away. Now, I was going to save Ash.

I knew I immediately had to make the decision of how I was going to play this. I had some time to think, but it would only be a few minutes before they were up, and would come chasing me down the path.

That's it- they were going to run down the path looking for me, thinking I was running home again. But this time, I'd be waiting for Ashy right here. I walked about a yard from the boulder, and squatted behind some shrubbery and rocks.

I listened to the shouting and watched as the rock I had smashed in the hole quivered every few seconds, while Team Rocket pushed it in attempts to escape. Finally, it popped out and they climbed up, red- faced and panting.

I sat down on the grass and leaned back in the sun, wondering how I could be such a genius.

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"You left him alone?!" Thayer shouted.

"No, it's not what you think!" I quickly told them. "He kind of... Got away." I meekly explained.

"What?" exclaimed Thayer. He always did have a bit of a temper.

"Calm down." Howells said, clutching the gray sack in his right hand. "He's served his purpose. I was planning on throwing him off The Bridge, but we can just let him go."

Jesse looked as relieved as I felt. "That's... Exactly what we were thinking!" she lied.

"Yes, exactly what we were thinking!" I followed gleefully.

Howells shook his head. "Whatever, let's just go back." he mumbled. We walked back the few miles to our base.

"Wait until you see this Pikachu." I raved, when we were in the cave.

Meowth nodded. "The boss will be so proud."

"It will put us right at the top with him!" added Jesse.

"It better, after all the trouble we went through to get it!" Thayer snapped.

"Pi... ka?" Lying in our clear box, Pikachu slowly rose from it's drugged sleep.

"Good morning, Pikachu!" Jesse said with a giggle, peering in at him.

Pikachu's face turned hostile when it saw us. "_Piiikaaaaa_!" Bright lightning filled the box, but it was Pikachu- proof.

"Let's get going." Howells said. "Before that kid finds us."

"Too late, Team Rocket!" A voice echoed in the underground HQ.

"Could it be?" I asked in dread, slowly turning around.

"I'd recognize that little twerp's voice anywhere." sneered Jesse.

Ash struck a courageous pose. "That's right! I'm here to get Pikachu back."

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**Yeah... So far, I literally have 0 reviews, 0 follows, and 0 favorites LOL xD But oh well, I thought I might as well post the next chapter anyway, haha...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so I did get a review that the POV switch was confusing. Since I'm just posting what I had written before, I'm not going to change anything, but I do want to apologize that it's confusing! Well... If you need any clarification, when you see that really weird fancy line, the POV switches either to Ash, Gary, or James. Thanks for reading! :D**

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Fury burned in Ash's eyes. "Help me?" he snapped in disdain. "You're here to help me?" Gary didn't move, maybe bewildered by Ash's anger. "That's so kind of you!"

"Ash, you don't understand!" Gary pleaded. "I know what's going on in there. You can't go down, they'll just kill you." He looked at the base's boulder, and desperately continued, "It's not just Jesse and James' usual pathetic attempts to steal your Pokemon. They've got, like, actual grunts with them. This is real. They will kill you."

"How can you ask me to not go in there?" Ash spat. "I'm not like you, Gare- Bear." Gary's mouth hung open with shock. Ash continued in thoughtless rage. "I don't just betray people. Especially not after they've been there for me no matter what." He found himself unable to stop. "I went through so much for you. But this whole time... You... You..." But this time he was too angry to finish his sentence.

He stomped on the button and the entrance opened up. "Bye, Gary. Thanks for nothing." Gary was still speechless. "Have fun spending that reward." I added as I squated down.

"Wait, Ash!" called Gary. "You've got it wrong."

I'm sure I do, Ash sarcastically thought as he quitely slid down the hole.

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I played with the cuff of my sleeve anxiously. "Kill him?" The walls of the underground cave felt tight around me.

"No, we're going to let him go out and tell the authorities about us." Thayer spat. "Yes, we're going to kill him!"

"Well, by that logic, shouldn't we kill the other kid too? He probably knows even more than this one does." Jesse pointed out.

"He won't tell anyone, not now." replied Howells.

"How can you be so sure?" Meowth asked.

"Didn't you see that kid?" Howells said. "He was desperate. That reward means everything to him." Ash was waiting in the main part of the cave, his wrists and feet tied together, while we were in a small passage where, although we were not far from him, he couldn't overhear us.

He seemed confident, but I was still skeptical. "But, I don't think he still believes he'll actually get it."

Howells sighed, clearly annoyed. "Don't you get it? He has too much pride. Trust me, he's going to run home and pretend like none of this ever happened." He walked towards the Main Part of the base, making it clear that he was done with the conversation. Jesse, Meowth, and I followed.

The HQ was made up of a few parts, although comparably very small. There was the Main Area, and a few passages that looked like they led somewhere, but actually all circled back to the Main Area.

"Hey, lemme go!" Ash demanded, struggling as he sat against the cave wall.

I swallowed loudly. I would never admit it to anyone, but I've always kind of liked that kid. And maybe I act like a ruthless bad guy, but in reality, I would never want to kill anyone.

"You wanna go? Alright, let's go." said Thayer, preparing to leave, so we could go to The Bridge.

"Where are we going?" Ash said.

Before anyone could answer, Ash heard a siren. "We've got an intruder." said Howells.

"I'll take care of it." said James. "You guys go ahead."

"Okay, and you two stay here." Howells referred to Jesse and Meowth. "This'll be easy."

Ash looked scared. "Where are we going?" he repeated.

"We're going for a walk." said Thayer.

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"Ash, please!" I pleaded. "Come on, I'm trying to help you!"

"Help me? You're here to help me?" Ash looked almost red with anger. "That's so kind of you!"

"Ash, you don't understand!" I went on shamelessly. "I know what's going on in there. You can't go down, they'll just kill you." I glanced at the base, wondering what they could be doing right now. "It's not just Jesse and James' usual pathetic attempts to steal your Pokemon. They've got, like, actual grunts with them. This is real. They will kill you."

"How can you ask me to not go in there?" Ash growled. "I'm not like you, Gare- Bear." I felt my mouth drop. Ash has stooped too low, now. Out of everything that could be said, that was the one thing that was off limits. Maybe I should have felt mad, but I was too shocked.

When I focused again, Ash was still talking. "-betray people. Especially not after they've been there for me no matter what." He thinks he gets it. "I went through so much for you. But this whole time... You... You..." He doesn't. Ash doesn't get it.

He stepped on the button, opening up the secret door. "Bye, Gary. Thanks for nothing." I found myself unable to make words. "Have fun spending that reward." No. He needs to understand. It's not what he thinks.

"Wait, Ash!" I called. "You've got it wrong."

Ash wasn't turning back.

"It wasn't money, Ash!"

Ash was gone.

Overwhelmed. Sleep- deprived. Hungry. Remorseful. Hurt. Confused. Humbled. It was too much. I sat down, and waited for nothing. To hear the gunshot, maybe. I felt a lump in my throat, like dry- swallowing a pill.

"It was my parents, Ash." I croaked. "They said they could find my parents." Maybe Ash couldn't hear me, but I didn't care. "All I had to do was help them..."

I inhaled sharply at the sight of a tear dropping onto my knee. "No." Gary Oak doesn't cry. I couldn't remember the last time I had cried before this, if you don't count the Rattata incident. I sniffed loudly, and wiped my eyes with my sleeve.

"No." I repeated again. "I'm not giving up NOW, after all this." I felt my cheek with the back of my hand, and my face felt hot. I sighed, frustrated that I would have to save Ash looking like I was just crying.

Oh, the trials of being a hero.

But this situation does beg the question- what now?

I was getting impatient waiting here for so long. Besides, I didn't know how much time I had before Ash would do something dumb and get killed.

I pictured the underground base in my head. There were a bunch of little paths leading off of the room I saw, and I can bet one of them is a secret exit, so they can sneak out unnoticed if need be.

I hiked up a hill, one that was right by the base. It would be hard to find an opening. It wouldn't stand out any more than the entrance did. I bent low to the ground as I walked. "Button... Where's a button..." I mumbled to myself.

I spotted a boulder, practically identical to the one that the entrance was made of. "Stupid Team Rocket." I laughed, running over to it.

"Yes!" There was a button, blended into the scenery, in almost the same spot as the other one. I took a deep breath, hoping I would be able to sneak down quietly, and pressed it.

Suddenly, i felt blinding pain, darkness, and the earth giving way beneath me, all at the same time. I opened my eyes, and I first looked at my ankle, because I would naturally first look to it, as it was hurting badly. It was twisted a little, and not in a normal way. That just grosses me out.

Then I noticed that I was in a deep hole. "Hm. It was a trap." I said.

"And I'm all alone."

I looked up at the light shining in through the hole. What's wrong with talking to yourself if there's no one around to hear it? So, I scooted over so I could lean comfortably against a wall. "You know," I said. "This reminds me of what happened a few days ago. After I got attacked by that Pokemon. What was it?" I hesitated. "Oh yeah, it was a Rattata."

I coughed. "Trying to climb up that ledge, to save myself..." I looked down at my ankle, noting the searing pain. "Injured..." I felt the crumbling dirt walls with my dirty hands. "And I couldn't do it." I closed my eyes, tired. "So I just gave up."

"Only, I had Ash to save me, then. Now, I have no one." Disturbed, I opened my eyes again. "And now, instead of being killed by a Pokemon, I'll just starve to death." The air was thin and hard to suck in. "Or maybe suffocate."

"Maybe Ash will come to save me again." I waited. Silence. I waited some more. Nothing. "I guess not."

"I've changed a lot since then, you know?" I noticed, giving up on waiting. "It's kinda weird, I guess." I stood up, leaving the pressure off my injured foot, which did feel noticably better. "I realize that the moral of the story is that I shouldn't give up now." I looked up. 0Should I call for help?"

"Okay... I guess I should. On the count of three." I stalled. "One... Two..." I inhaled deeply. "Hello? Can anyone help me!" I bit my lip. "Hello?!"

"Can someone help m-"

"SSH!" Someone cut me off. I looked up, and saw a figure standing at the top of the hole. "Stop yelling." the voice said. I squinted. It was James.

"What are you doing?" I called, unsure how to act about this.

"I'm saving you. Your friend is in trouble." James told me. "We have to go." He dropped down a rope ladder to me. "I'll explain later."

It was kind of difficult and painful trying to climb up with my injured ankle, but it wasn't a good time to complain. Besides, it wasn't really that bad anyway. I rubbed my sore hands. "What's going on?" I asked anxiously.

"Come on, I'll tell you on the way." James said.

"That'll be a little difficult." I poised the conflict. "I kinda hurt my ankle when I fell. It's not too bad, but..."

"Okay, I can help you for now. Let's just go." James said. He walked over to me and stopped. "But wait- if we're going to do this, there's a good chance we'll fail."

I grinned. "I understand." I said, feeling brave, and proud.

"-And if we fail, you might die."

I repeat: The trials of being a hero.

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Ash paled when he saw what he was standing in front of. "The- The Bridge? Why are we here?"

The Bridge was pretty well known, mostly because of how deep and scary it was. It's a long rope bridge, complete with a stereotypical deep drop. No one can really say for sure how deep it is, but there are many rumors. Some say it's 100 feet deep, some say it's 600, others say that it's bottomless.

The two grunts exchanged a look. I felt my stomach drop to the floor.

"Come on, let me go!"

Ash whipped his head towards the shouts. No way. "Gary?" Gary stepped towards the bridge slowly, his wrists tied behind his back.

"Hey, Ash." he said solemnly. We're both going to die now, he knows it. And yet he seems to accept it. Like, he's okay with it. I squinted. What's with that kid.

One of the grunts, the more relaxed of the two, looked at Gary. "Well, looks like I was wrong about you."

Gary shrugged and tilted his head. "How so?"

"Well, we only trusted you to go because we thought you were a coward." Gary seemed unphased, even amused. He lightly nodded. "We thought, this kid isn't a threat to us." The grunt nodded back. "In fact, we even thought you were too proud to tell anyone about this whole thing."

Now, Gary flinched. The man continued, "Yep, we were wrong. But for the record, we had no intention to even go through with our part of the deal." The smug expression on the boy's face wavered, and it was the grunt's turn to be coy. "You really thought we were going to find your mommy and daddy?"

It took half a second for it all to click. Gary sharply turned his head to Ash, and at once, it all came crashing down on him. It wasn't money. His stomach ached at the realization. He glanced down, off The Bridge, at his fated grave.

It couldn't end like this- it just couldn't.

"I'm sorry." he blurted out.

Gary's face softened into warmth. "I'm sorry too, Ashy."

The second grunt rolled his eyes. "Well, this has been cute, but let's just get this over with." He looked at the two. "Who's first?"

"It doesn't matter to me, sir!" Gary said lightheartedly. I couldn't understand what he had to feel so happy about. It was absolutely disturbing.

"Let's go." the grunt grumbled. He grabbed tight onto Gary's collar and walked him onto the bridge. My stomach lurched just watching it. I silently said goodbye to Gary, fighting hopeless tears.

The grunt narrowed his eyes at him. "What're you up to..." he suspiciously said.

I gasped. Gary, revealing that his hands were free, gave one big punch in the grunt's nose. The bridge shook dangerously. Taking his opportunity as the man recovered from shock, he ran to the end of The Bridge.

"Watch out!" Ash warned. The other grunt (He liked to think of him as Grunt #1) left Ash ungaurded and jumped in front of The Bridge.

"Uh- oh!" Gary was stuck in between the two. Grunt #1 threw a punch, but anticipating it, Gary dodged it. "Help!" he yelled.

"Uh..." Ash panicked. "I, uh..." He didn't know what to do.

"Don't move." James quickly moved behind Ash, and started cutting the ropes that tied his hands together with a knife.

"What do we do now?" I asked urgently.

Gary turned around and socked Grunt #2 in his face.

"I don't know, I never really planned past this part!" James cried.

Ash groaned and went behind Grunt #1, pulling his shoulder back so he was facing him, and giving his best punch. Unfortunately, the grunt completely dodged it and retaliated with a faster punch. The force was enough to push Ash back onto the ground.

Grunt #1 followed Ash off The Bridge and walked towards him. "H- Help, someone!" He was still on the ground, too scared to react quickly to what was happening.

The grunt walked up in front of me and jabbed me in the eye, and the sky looked purple for a second. Then he raised his fist, and I prepared myself for the knockout punch. Just when he was about to deliver it, he fell to the ground. "Huh?" Ash looked up.

"You're welcome." said James, holding a small pipe. "You're lucky that I always come prepared.

We turned around to see The Bridge, and Gary still fighting with Grunt #2. I was amazed at how long he had survived on there. "I'm coming, Gary!"

Ash ran onto The Bridge. He had always been told that he's brave and determined to a fault, and as he stepped on there, blindly, and without a plan, he suddenly understood why, as well as realized it wasn't a compliment as he always thought it was.

Gary was a few steps away, still fighting off the grunt. "I'm comin', Gary!" Ash shouted.

James tossed him the pipe. He slowly lifted it above his head, and with as much force as he could manage, swung it onto the grunt's head. The impact felt dull and thick. He heard an echoing thump.

Ash looked down at the grunt. "Wow." he said.

"Yeah." Gary agreed. "Wow."

Ash grabbed his arms and they dragged him to the end of the bridge.

"Thanks." said Gary to James.

Ash nodded. "Thank you."

James just shrugged. "Sorry, kid." he looked a Gary.

"It's fine." Gary assured him.

For once in his life, Ash admired Gary as a person. He looked at him. Blood- stained clothes, a slight limp, not to mention the emotional damage, but he had managed to pull through. He hadn't given up or let Ash down. Ash smiled. Maybe he'd always thought of Gary as the biggest douchebag- But he had proven himself to be a good kid.

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I had never thought I'd see Ash as anything but a loser before this. I looked at the boy. I saw bravery, a good concience, plus a nice black eye. He's everything that defines courage. Even when he's afraid, he will always put others before him. He smiled, and I did too. Maybe I'd looked down on him, and made fun of him my whole life- But he had proven himself to be a good kid.

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**Dun- duh- dun! All done! I hope someone bothered to read this and maybe even enjoyed it ^-^ It's all over now! Thank youuuuuu :)**


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